ISIL leader in Afghanistan 'killed in US raid'

Pentagon says Abu Sayed was killed earlier this week in an attack on his headquarters in Kunar province.

14 Jul 2017 20:39 GMT

Two of Abu Sayed's predecessors were also killed in attacks by the US military in Afghanistan [File: Reuters]

The head of ISIL in Afghanistan, Abu Sayed, was killed in an attack on his headquarters in Kunar province earlier this week, the Pentagon said on Friday.

Spokeswoman Dana White said in a statement on Friday that other members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, known as ISIS) were killed in the raid on Tuesday.

"US forces killed Abu Sayed, the emir of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria - Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) - in a strike on the group's headquarters in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, July 11," White said in the statement, referring to ISIL's other acronym.

"The raid also killed other ISIS-K members and will significantly disrupt the terror group's plans to expand its presence in Afghanistan."

Sayed is the third ISIL leader in Afghanistan to be killed since July 2016.

Sayed had led the group since late April after the previous leader, Abdul Hasib, had been killed by US forces. Hasib's predecessor Hafiz Sayed Khan was also killed by US forces.